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On Youtube, the expression “gun prepper” has become common. It refers to a “prepper” who emphasizes acquiring firearms. Some preppers criticize “gun preppers” because they aren’t making other basic preparations. They won’t have food stored. They don’t learn how to purify water. While firearms are a key preparation, as I emphasize in The Prepper Next Door: A Practical Guide For Disaster And Emergency Planning, having forty pistols won’t make you forty times better prepared than having one pistol. The law of diminishing returns applies. Some guys like to use “prepping” as a reason to purchase many nice toys. The term “gun prepper” got me thinking about what other kinds of preppers are out there.

Food Preppers. “Food prepper” sounds like somebody who works at a restaurant. Many preppers are big into preserving foods. They can; they dehydrate; they vacuum seal; they preserve jams. Fortunately many gun preppers marry food preppers, or they’d starve.

Homesteader Preppers. These guys and gals are big into learning outside pioneer skills. They love gardening. They might take up beekeeping. They have a chicken or two running around somewhere. A few will raise grain, goats, and cattle.

Homemaker Preppers. These preppers like learning indoor pioneer skills. Sewing is popular. They might make their own laundry detergent. They’ve probably upholstered a chair.

Wilderness Survival Preppers. Guys usually. They want to live off the land. They love their bug out bags. They know at least three or four ways to make a fire. They hunt. They fish.

Fitness Preppers. Younger guys usually. They’re big into fitness. They do crossfit and study Brazilian Jiu-jitsu. They lift weights or do body weight exercises. They own more Captain of Crush grippers than an octopus would need.

Mechanical Preppers. Guys usually, often older, who associate do-it-yourself mechanical skills with prepping. They repair their own cars. They might generate their own energy with solar power. They have an attraction to melting metals. If they’re also gun preppers, they reload.